Reunion
by zalfie-and-troyler
Summary: Reunion: an instance of two or more people coming together again after a period of separation. After nearly 20 years, Dudley Dursley has to experience just that when his son gets an all-too-familiar letter.
1. The Dursleys

"Mum, Dad, I'm home from school!"

Dudley Dursley heard his eldest son open and close the front door, and smiled slightly. It had been Jay's last day of primary school today, and in two months, at the end of summer, he was going off to secondary school.

"Dad, Dad, guess what? Guess what?" Jay said excitedly, his mop of strawberry blonde hair falling into his eyes as he ran towards his father. Jay Dursley was a lanky 11-year-old, with wide eyes and a mixture of blonde and red hair (where the redness came from, Dudley had no idea). He had a light splattering of freckles across his nose and cheeks, and his eyes were a rich chestnut colour.

Dudley chuckled. "What, Jay?"

Jay pushed his hair impatiently out of his eyes and sat down in the chair opposite Dudley. "We had an award ceremony today, and I got a prize for being the most improved in academics!"

Dudley watched his son beaming and waiting for a response from his father. The sight caused his own face to split into a huge grin.

"That's awesome, Jay! I'm very proud of you," Dudley said, standing up from his chair and wrapping his arms around Jay in a hug.

"What's this about my Jay-Jay getting an award?" Dudley's wife Jemma walked into the room at that moment, a dishrag over her shoulder and her hands on her hips.

While Jay told his mum what he had gotten at school, Dudley took the chance to marvel at the scene before him. There hadn't been a day that had gone by in the past 18 years where Dudley had not been stunned at his luck. Here he was, sitting in his own house, with his beautiful wife and 3 lovely children, two of which were currently upstairs. He smirked at the thought of what his fifteen-year-old self would have said if he could see him now.

Nineteen years ago, his parents and himself had been whisked out of the house by a short and overexcited old man called Dedalus Diggle, to flee from something that most people would not believe existed. But, if he had learnt anything at all in his years of living at Number 4, Privet Drive, it was to expect the unexpected.

Finally, after nearly a year in hiding, the Dursleys had been told that they were allowed to return to their home, and that the evil wizard they were hiding from was dead. As soon as they had gotten settled again, Dudley had taken his experience with dangerous situations to heart. He had done a bit of growing up in the years since the Dementor attack, and realised that life was too unpredictable to waste, and so he had set his resolve and joined the gym.

It had taken a long, long time, but Dudley had managed to shrink back down to a healthy weight, after spending his whole life being three times the size he was supposed to be. He focused on not only making sure he could see his toes, but turning his flab into muscle. It was at the gym that he had met his wife Jemma, and they had struck up an immediate friendship, which slowly blossomed. Now, he was a fit and healthy 36 year old with a gorgeous, loving wife, and he was proud of how far he had come since those dark days of bullying and uncertainty.

Dudley was drawn suddenly back to earth when he heard his wife yelling.

"Twins! Get downstairs now, you two haven't said hello to your father yet!"

Dudley braced himself for impact as he listened to two very loud pairs of feet stomping down the stairs.

"DADDY!"

Dudley held his arms wide and lifted his two youngest kids into his arms, hoisting them off the floor. Connor and Poppy Dursley were twins, and almost identical, except for the fact that they were different genders. Both 9 years old, they had wavy blonde hair and hazel-green eyes. Like Jay, they had a patch of light-coloured freckles on their faces, but unlike their older brother, who was gangly, they both had very small frames.

"Hey, Dad, a weird thing happened today," Jay said suddenly, frowning slightly. Dudley turned to face his eldest son once again and nodded for him to continue.

"Well, we were in art class, and Mr Rosenthal was going on about how literature isn't true art, and that all those young adult novels are just trashy fiction," Jay said, his face turning slightly pink as he spoke. It was common knowledge in the Dursley household that Jay loved books. With a passion. So whenever someone like his crabby old art teacher criticised them, Jay was not usually very happy about it.

"I was trying to explain to him that people say books are art as a metaphor, because they mean the way the words paint a picture in your mind, but he just wouldn't listen," continued Jay.

"Old coot," Dudley muttered, and Jay looked extremely pleased.

"Well, anyway, he was having a go at me for not appreciating the artistic spectrum or whatever, and I was just so mad at him about the book thing, and then all of a sudden, his socks turned blue! Both of them! I think some blue dye must've leaked through the floor from the room above, or something, but I mean…" Jay trailed off as he looked at his father uncertainly.

Dudley frowned. That was very odd. Obviously it was coincidental, because Dudley had been angry at his teachers loads of times at high school, and he'd never turned their socks blue… and what Jay had said made sense… but all the same, it was strange…

"That is weird, Jay! It probably was the dye, but what a coincidence, eh?" Dudley said finally, and he watched as Jay grinned at him. Dudley smiled back. Yes, he was extremely lucky to have the life he did. It was a stark contrast to the life of unpredictability he'd had before, but he loved it.


	2. A Surprise Visitor

Dudley awoke suddenly, early in the morning on the first of July. He sat up and looked around groggily, bleary-eyed and tousle-haired, and was still for a few seconds before he registered that someone was calling him from down the hall.

"Dad? Dad, could you come here, please?"

"Coming, Jay," Dudley answered. He ambled out the doorway of his bedroom and down the hallway until he reached the third doorway. He turned the knob and pushed it open, and was shocked at what he saw.

On the bed sat Jay, his arm held out at a right angle, and on it was perched a large barn owl. Clothes littered the floor at Jay's feet, and between one of Jay's shoes and a tee-shirt, Dudley could just make out the outline of an envelope.

Dudley stared. He couldn't see the envelope properly, but he had a vague idea of what it contained, and from what he could tell, Jay hadn't seen it yet.

"Why is there an owl in your room, Jay?" Dudley asked calmly, while he swiftly crossed the room and bent down, on the pretence of collecting dirty clothes from off the ground. He picked the letter off the floor and slipped it subtly into his pyjama pocket.

"I don't know, Dad. I mean, I had the window open because it was hot, but I never expected an owl to fly in!" Jay said incredulously, staring at his own arm.

Dudley smiled faintly. "It's not your fault, Jay. But would you be able to keep that owl in your room for me? Just for a little while," he added, as Jay stared at him.

"Alright, Dad."

Dudley smiled. He then pressed a finger to his mouth and indicated the twins' room next door. He did not want Connor and Poppy to wake up earlier than they needed to, as he knew from experience that 9 year olds were nightmares to deal with in the mornings. (A/N: I have experience with this, too. Little sisters are so fun.)

Dudley pulled the envelope out hurriedly once he was back in his bedroom and out of sight from Jay, and turned it over. He goggled at it.

"Dudley?" his wife said sleepily, staring up at him. "It's 6:30 in the morning. On a Saturday."

Dudley nodded absent-mindedly, his mind too full of memories to answer. HE was thinking back, back to that fateful day when his father's gun got twisted into a knot by what he supposed was a giant, and when the giant finally gave his cousin that letter… Dudley stared at the nearly identical envelope in his hands.

Mr J Dursley

The Last Bedroom

Number 6, Redvine Avenue

Godric's Hollow

The curly letters were written in emerald green ink, which was stunningly similar to the eye colour of his cousin.

With trembling hands, Dudley slit the parchment open and opened the letter. His eyes scanned the page, and they widened as he read.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL _of_ WITCHCRAFT _and_ WIZARDRY

Headmistress: Minerva McGonagall

(Order of Merlin, First Class)

_Dear Mr. Dursley,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

_Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

_Yours sincerely_

_Neville Longbottom_

_Deputy Headmaster_

Dudley's heart fluttered. Jay was a wizard? But… neither himself nor Jemma had any magical blood in the family… except for his cousin, and Dudley highly doubted that the blood would be passed on two generations after it had appeared.

"What's that you're holding, Dudley?" Jemma asked, looking at Dudley blearily.

"An acceptance letter," Dudley said quietly, avoiding his wife's eyes. "To a school."

Jemma frowned. "But we got Jay's acceptance letter for Eton months ago. You didn't enrol him at any other schools, did you?"

Dudley shook his head. "You don't apply for this school. You get the letter, and you go."

Jemma made an impatient grasp for the letter, but Dudley held it out of her reach.

"Dudley, what are you doing?! What is in that letter?!"

Dudley took a deep breath and raised his head to meet Jemma's gaze, and her protests died away at the look on his face.

"Jemma, I need to tell you something. This letter… well, I've seen one just like it before, and you're going to think I'm crazy, but you've got to hear me out." Jemma nodded, but Dudley pressed on.

"Seriously, Jemma, promise me that you'll trust me on this," Dudley said, holding her hand in his and squeezing it gently.

Jemma nodded.

"This letter," he began, his voice trembling only slightly, "is from a school called Hogwarts, which is a - a magical school." Jemma made to interrupt, but Dudley held up his hand.

"Please let me finish, Jem," he asked quietly, and she fell silent.

"Jay has been sent a letter by this Hogwarts school because - well, because he's a wizard." Dudley cringed at the look on Jemma's face. He sounded insane, but he had to get it out.

"Jay has magical powers. He is a wizard, and this school is a school for magical people like Jay."

Dudley felt incredibly guilty that he couldn't provide more information, because his wife looked extremely confused.

"How do you know it's real? It could be a prank -"

"It's not a prank," Dudley said wearily. "I know it exists, because I knew someone who went there. When I was one, a child was left on my doorstep so that my parents could care for him. My cousin. He lived with us for eleven years, and then one day he got a letter exactly like this one, telling him he was a wizard and that he was to go to Hogwarts. Long story short, he did end up going, and he's done magic in front of me before. It's real."

Jemma gulped and stared at Dudley.

"I know I sound insane, but -"

"I believe you," Jemma said simply, giving Dudley a small smile. "But, oh, Dudley, what do we do?"

Dudley sat still for a second, then grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from his bedside table. He hastily wrote on the paper for a few minutes, then folded it up and called out.

"Jay! Come here, please, and bring the owl!"

There were a few muffled hoots and the sound of scuffling, and then the door opened and Jay came in, the owl perched on his shoulder contently. He brushed its feathers with his finger.

"Yeah, Dad?"

Dudley walked over to Jay and held out the paper. The owl obediently grabbed it with its beak and watched Dudley, waiting for instructions.

"Er -" Dudley said, suddenly feeling very stupid. What if it was just a regular owl? But then, there was the letter….

"Do you know where to go?" The owl blinked its huge eyes once and took off, flying out the window without so much as another hoot.

"Dad… what did you do that for?" Jay asked quietly.

"That was a letter to my cousin. He can help us."

"What's his name?" his wife and son asked at the same time.

Dudley sighed and thought of the name he had remembered multiple times over the years, but never spoken.

"Harry Potter."


	3. A Letter For Harry

"Dad, you've got a letter!" James Potter bellowed, knowing his father would only hear if he yelled. He always got so wrapped up in his cases for work that he tended to zone out and barely heard anything.

The sound of footsteps echoed on the stairs, and Harry appeared, pushing his glasses up his nose.

"Who's it from, James?"

"I don't know," James admitted. "But it's made out of this weird white stuff…"

"It's called paper," Albus said, looking up from his book. "It's what Muggles use instead of parchment."

Harry and Albus smirked at James' dumbfounded expression. "But why would a Muggle be writing to Dad?"

Harry went over to the window and coaxed the barn owl inside with an owl pellet. It held out the letter to him, and he took it from the owl's beak.

_Harry,_

_I know you must be confused to be getting a letter from me, of all people, but I need your help. My son got a letter from Hogwarts, the same letter you got when we were eleven._

_I don't know what to tell him or my wife, and I know I don't deserve your help, but please reply. You're my only hope of helping them to understand the magical world._

Harry couldn't believe his eyes at what came next.

_Dudley Dursley_

Dudley had a wife? And son? And he was a wizard? Harry was shocked. He didn't know what to say. He had so many questions - Dudley could spell? And he was contacting Harry? With an owl? And his son was a wizard? His mouth fell open.

"Dad?" James said, trying to see the letter but failing.

"Dad, what is it?" Albus asked quietly, looking at his dad in concern.

"My - my cousin…" Harry stuttered, before turning on his heel and marching out the door.

"What was that about?" James asked Albus incredulously.

X x X

"Gin, what do I do? I can't tell him everything in a letter, and I…" Harry blurted out to his wife, who fixed him with a stare.

"Harry James Potter, I know I despise the man for what he did to you, but you cannot on any accounts leave his son stranded without any knowledge. He's about to dive headfirst into a world he doesn't understand, and Dudley obviously trusts you, so you have to help him. There's no other choice." Ginny Potter said wisely, before blowing a strand of flaming hair out of her eyes impatiently.

"So what do I say to him?" Harry asked.

"Invite him round for dinner, of course!" Ginny exclaimed. "That way, you can explain in person, and we can see what Dudley's like now. And introduce his son to Al, so he knows someone at Hogwarts."

Harry nodded. He fished a quill out of the Muggle pen pot which was a gift from Hermione and began to scribble out a reply on a scrap of parchment. By the time he had finished the letter, the Hogwarts owl had gone, so his whistled for his own owl, Sirius. The stormy-coloured bird flew down to Harry's outstretched arm, and Harry tied the letter to its ankle.

"Take this to Dudley Dursley, okay?" he said gently to the owl, who hooted obediently and took off.

X x X

"Dad! Dad! The owl's back! But… it's a different owl…" Jay said, his voice trailing off as Dudley got up to fetch the owl and read the letter. He unrolled the parchment and the bird soared away. He began to read out loud to Jay and Jemma:

_Dudley,_

_My wife and I would like to invite you to dinner with us tonight, at my house in Godric's Hollow. That way, I can explain to your son properly and he can ask any questions he has, as can you. _

_It's good to hear from you._

_See you at 6,_

_Harry_

"Harry has a wife?" Dudley muttered under his breath in amazement. And they were going to dinner. After nearly 20 years, he would see his cousin again. And they lived in the same village! How odd. The Dursleys had only moved to Godric's Hollow 2 years ago, but he had never known that his cousin lived here, too.

"Dad?" a quiet voice said from behind him, and Dudley turned around to see Jay looking nervous.

"Yes, Jay?"

"Why is your cousin inviting us to dinner all of a sudden? And what did he mean by 'explain to your son properly'?"

Dudley sighed. "Jay, do you remember yesterday how you told me that Mr Rosenthal's socks turned blue?"

Jay nodded.

"Well, that wasn't dye dripping through the ceiling. It was magic."

Jay's eyes suddenly became very wide. "What?" he gasped.

"Jay, you're a wizard. You have magical powers."

"But… but… how - ?"

"I can't explain it to you, because I don't know enough about the magical world," said Dudley guiltily. "But my cousin Harry is also a wizard, and he's going to help you and Mum and I to understand. So don't worry," Dudley said, pulling his son into a tight hug. "You'll be okay."

Ten and a half hours later, as the Dursley family piled into the car, Jemma trying to pry apart the twins as they wrestled each other for the window seat, Dudley tried to take his own advice. Jay's face reflected how Dudley felt, which was as though he was about to throw up. It was time to see Harry again.


	4. At The Potters

At long last, the Dursleys pulled up outside a large and modest two-storey home. Dudley swallowed his guilt and nerves and stepped out of the car, grasping his wife's hand with one hand and his son's with the other. They walked up towards the door, and stepped onto the welcome mat. Dudley glanced down at Jay and, seeing the look on his face, gave his hand an encouraging squeeze.

Dudley took a deep breath, raised his fist and knocked shakily on the door.

The sound of footsteps echoed from inside the house and Dudley waited, clutching Jemma's hand as if his life depended on it.

Suddenly, the doorknob began turning very slowly. A chink of light appeared in the crack between the door and the wall.

Next second, the door was wide open and Dudley found himself staring at his cousin, who was staring just as much back.

Harry was tall and quite slim, his eyes bright green and a thin lightning-bolt scar on his forehead as always. He wore the same round glasses and his hair held the same untidiness that it always had.

After a few seconds of gaping at each other, Harry cleared his throat.

"Hey, Big D," he said, offering Dudley a small, tentative smile.

"Harry," Dudley whispered, staring.

A voice echoed from within the house, getting nearer and nearer to where they were standing.

"Harry, why on earth are you keeping them out there? Honestly, it's like you have no manners -" A woman with shocking red hair appeared suddenly behind Harry.

"Hi, everyone. I'm Ginny, Harry's wife. You must be Dudley," she said, holding her hand out and offering him a noticeably frosty smile. Dudley also noticed that Ginny's smile became much warmer when she introduced herself to his wife.

"Come inside. I'm sure my kids will introduce themselves to you," she said to Jay and the twins, smiling. She led them over to the couches and said, "Dinner will be ready in about half an hour.

Harry looked over at Dudley once they were sitting on the couch. He had lost a huge amount of weight since they had last seen each other, and he had also gotten taller. His hair was a darker shade of blonde, too. He looked healthy, and Harry could see that as Dudley looked over at his wife and kids, he saw that he was happy, too, which oddly suited Dudley. Sure, he always had everything he wanted, but Harry sensed that Dudley had never truly been happy until now.

"So, Harry," Dudley said, once they had gotten settled, "how are you?"  
>"I'm great, actually. I've got my beautiful wife and kids," and here he looked over at Ginny, who rolled her eyes, "and I've got a job that I love. Speaking of the kids - Kids! Come in here, please, so you can meet our guests!"<p>

A boy of about thirteen swaggered into the room, his auburn hair falling into his eyes and and a smirk upon his face, as he pushed his familiar round glasses up his nose. Behind him, a small red-haired girl with striking green eyes skipped in, laughing, and finally, a boy around the same age as Jay walked in.

Dudley's jaw dropped.

The boy as almost a carbon copy of his father, save the eyes and the lack of glasses. His eyes were the same shade of hazel as his mother's but every other feature was identical to Harry.

"This is James," Harry said, gesturing to the oldest boy, who nodded in greeting; "Al," he pointed to the younger boy, who smiled; "and Lily," he pointed to the little girl, who waved happily. Dudley suddenly had a moment of realisation. His aunt, whom he had never met, had been called Lily.

"Well, this is J - Jay," Dudley said, after a look from his son, "and the twins, Connor and Poppy." The twins smiled mischievously together. Harry's eyes widened, and he smiled faintly at Dudley. "As in the flower?" Dudley nodded, smiling back.

"So, Dad, why the sudden family reunion?" James asked, looking at his dad.

Harry and Dudley looked at each other. They knew they had some explaining to do.

"Well, um -"

"I think we -"

"Maybe we should start at at the beginning," Harry said. "That would help everyone understand why you're here, and in Jay's case, what being a wizard really means."

Jay looked at Harry. "So, it really… does exist?" he said quietly.

Harry nodded slowly. He turned to his own children. "You three need to listen, as well, because some of this story even you don't know about."

Once everyone was seated, including Ginny, Harry began to speak. "Please don't interrupt us, unless it's really important. Dudley and I have to tell the story together." He glanced at Dudley, who nodded.

"On the night of Halloween, in 1981, my parents were killed by a very evil wizard, called Lord Voldemort," Harry said, and Ginny flinched slightly but did not speak.

"I was taken to the only other family I had - my aunt and uncle, or Dudley's mum and dad. For eleven years, we lived a normal life together -"

"Normal for me," Dudley said. "I got absolutely everything I wanted. Harry was shoved under the stairs, in a cupboard."

Everyone gasped.

"But weird things would always happen when Harry was around. My friends and I - well, we didn't like Harry very much, and we did things like chase Harry around the school, when suddenly he'd end up on the roof. Mum would shave his hair because it was too messy, but it would grow back the day after -"

"And on Dudley's eleventh birthday, I made the glass disappear from a snake enclosure at the zoo," Harry said, smirking at the expression on James' face.

"But then the letters started coming. Letters addressed to me, when I'd never had any friends before. Uncle Vernon was not too happy about this."

Dudley snorted. "Understatement of the year. He basically upped and moved us all about a dozen times, but the letters kept coming. So we went to a broken-down shack on a rock, in the sea. But that didn't stop them."

"Hagrid the half-giant came to the hut to deliver my letter in person, and that was when I found out about the wizarding world. Hagrid explained to me what I was, and why I was getting the letters to Hogwarts, although I didn't believe it at first," Harry said.

"That's not all he did," Dudley said, grimacing but with laughter in his eyes. "He also turned Dad's rifle into a pretzel with his bare hands and gave me a pig's tail when I tried to eat Harry's first ever birthday cake."

There were a few stifled sniggers, coming from the general direction of the children, although both Ginny and Jemma smirked.

"Anyway, I went off to Hogwarts, and I met Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, and Ginny here, and I guess the rest is history," Harry said, smiling. He turned to Jay. "You're not the only one who's never heard of Hogwarts when they get the letter, Jay. My best friend, Hermione, has Muggle parents, and she was the smartest person in my year."

Jay stared at Harry. "Muggle?" he said, confused. A look of recognition passed over Harry's face. "A Muggle is what we call non-magical people. So, your mum and dad are Muggles, which makes you Muggleborn. Hermione is Muggleborn, and my mum was Muggleborn."

Jay nodded, his eyes wide. "So Hogwarts is a school for magical people, like me… What subjects do they teach there? Where even is the school? How do you do magic? Is there a library? Are there-"

Harry held his hand up and Jay fell silent. "Slow down, Jay," Harry said, but he was smiling.

"I just have so many questions," Jay said breathlessly.

"And I can answer them all," said Harry. "Okay, so Hogwarts doesn't teach normal subjects, like math or science. The main subjects are Potions, Transfiguration, Charms, Herbology, History of Magic and Defence Against the Dark Arts, although there are electives that you can choose once you get older, like Ancient Runes, Divination and Care Of Magical Creatures."

Jay's mouth was hanging open. "That sounds so cool!"

Harry grinned. "It is, although I hated History of Magic. The teacher is as dull as anything. So, you wanted to know where the school is? It's a boarding school in Scotland, and the train goes from Platform 9 and 3/4 at the start and end of every holiday."

Jay frowned. "9… and 3/4?"

Harry laughed. "It's between platforms 9 and 10 at King's Cross Station. You just go through the barrier between the platforms and there you are. It's quite simple. Anyway, you do magic with a wand. There's a place in London where you can go to get all your school supplies. I could take you, if you want, when we go. Magic is not too complicated, but you do need to get the wand movements and incantations right -"

"As shown here," James announced, hearing his father's statement. He raised his wand. "Wingardium Leviosa!"

To all five of the Dursleys' astonishment, one of the cushions on the couch began to hover in the air, unsupported. Harry pointed his wand at James angrily. "Rictusempra!" he exclaimed.

James suddenly keeled over and began laughing hysterically. He rolled around on the floor, clutching his stomach. After a few seconds, Harry raised his wand again and muttered, "Finite." At once, James stopped laughing and he stood up, rubbing the back of his neck.

"James," Harry said firmly, "you know you're not allowed to do magic outside of school! How many times do I have to tell you!" James had the good grace to blush. "Sorry, Dad," he said quietly. "I just wanted to show everyone what magic looks like -"

"Which your father or I could've done, seeing as we're of age!" Ginny said sternly. She crossed her arms over her chest. Harry walked forwards and ruffled his son's hair fondly. "It's alright, James. Just don't do it again."

"Alright, Dad," James said, perking up at once, and he bounded out of the room.

"Sorry about that," Harry said, turning to face the Dursleys, who looked stunned. "Underage magic is forbidden outside of Hogwarts, and James has done it on more than a few occasions."

Harry went over to Jay. "To answer you last question, there is definitely a library at the school. Do you like books?"

Jay nodded enthusiastically. Harry smiled. "So does Al. I'll get him to take you up to his room."

Albus walked over and held out his hand. Jay shook it. "I'm Al," he said, smiling. "I'm Jay," Jay replied, grinning back. They walked over to the stairs together and disappeared.


End file.
